（click on map to enlarge）
Mount Mitake is a 929-meter mountain in the Okutama area of western Tokyo that is a popular destination for hikers from the city. There is a cable car that takes you all the way to the top where there’s a shrine and various small cafes and inns. Though I have often ridden in the Okutama area it was only recently that I learned about this road to the top that cyclists like to climb.
And so, I decided to ride up the Tama River from my home in Kawasaki and give it a try. I am very familiar with the ride up to Ome as the Tamagawa has become a highway for me taking me to various routes in and out of the city. There are paved bike paths on either side along the river all the way up to Hamura, about 5 km before Ome. From there I rode Hwy 411 along the north side of the river up to Mitake Station and then turned left and crossed the beautiful Mitake Bridge. There were some rubber rafts traveling through the whitewater down below which brought back memories of rafting the Gallatin River in Montana.
You will soon turn left on 201 and are begin feeling the effects of the climb as you head up toward the cable car station. Soon after passing the entrance to the station the grades turn steep. There is a small parking lot on the upper portion of the parking area and from there the narrow asphalt road winds through majestic cedar trees all the way up to the summit. It’s not by any means the longest climb I’ve done but I would have to say it was the hardest. The grades are really unreasonable. The only vehicles I encountered were some service vehicles winding their engines up as they attacked the slope in their lowest gears. It sounded as if they were going to blow up. There were also a few hikers taking the road although most people ride the cable car to the top.
It's a narrow valley with a poor signal so I don’t think I got a good reading from my computer. It did show grades that at times exceeded 20%. I spent a lot of time off the bike as I pushing it up the slope to where I could try to jump back on again. Toward the top the trees are tagged with numbers that you count down.
It wasn’t pretty but somehow, I managed to make it to the top. There is a nice visitor’s center up there with bathrooms and clean water to drink. Many people enjoy hiking from there to the shrine that’s perched on top of the mountain. I had been there in the autumn and enjoyed a beautiful hike down the other side to some waterfalls and a rock garden.
Mount Mitake is primarily a hiking destination but, if you are looking for a good challenge, you can also do this climb by bike. Just be sure to have plenty of gears.
Mount Mitake Gallery
